Battle in the Astronomy Tower
- Chapter 27 (The Lightning-Struck Tower) |location=Hogwarts Castle Scotland |results=*Breach of Hogwarts defences *Albus Dumbledore's death |commander1=Harry Potter |commander2=Severus Snape |combatants1=*Harry Potter - Chapter 29 (Phoenix Lament) *Ronald Weasley *Hermione Granger *Ginevra Weasley *Luna Lovegood *Neville Longbottom *William Weasley *Fleur Delacour *Remus Lupin *Nymphadora Tonks *Minerva McGonagall *Filius Flitwick |combatants2=*Draco Malfoy *Severus Snape *Fenrir Greyback *Amycus Carrow *Alecto Carrow *Yaxley *Gibbon |casualties1=Albus Dumbledore |casualties2=Gibbon }} The Battle in the Astronomy Tower - [http://insider.pottermore.com/2014/02/jk-rowlings-interview-with-emma-watson.html Insider: "J.K. Rowling’s interview with Emma Watson discusses new projects, characters’ relationships and more"] was a siege, and consequently battle, occurring at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry in Scotland, in June 1997. The Death Eaters infiltrated the building through a Vanishing Cabinet in the Room of Requirement, and met Order of the Phoenix members inside the castle; they clashed, but only one death was reported. Several Death Eaters, however, broke away from the main battle and cornered Albus Dumbledore atop the Astronomy Tower, where he was mercilessly assassinated by Severus Snape. History Background In June 1996, Draco Malfoy was assigned the task of assassinating Albus Dumbledore by Lord Voldemort - Chapter 2 (''Spinner's End). This was ostentatiously done to surreptitiously and strategically dispose of the Headmaster, who was a key figure in the resistance to the Death Eaters' plans, but was also to punish Draco for his father Lucius's failures in the event that Draco should fail. Throughout the year, Draco made several halfhearted attempts on Dumbledore's life, such as purchasing a bewitched necklace from Borgin and Burke's shop in Knockturn Alley and placing it with the cursed Katie Bell in the hopes that it would reach Dumbledore, and sending Slughorn a bottle of poisoned mead before bewitching him to give it to the Headmaster. In each situation, they failed: the necklace's packaging was unintentionally opened by Katie, who was forced into the hospital for several long and painful months, and Slughorn forgot to give Dumbledore the mead for Christmas, but opened it in March and accidentally poisoned Ronald Weasley with it. In desperation, Malfoy hunted down a Vanishing Cabinet in the Room of Requirement, which he began slowly mending. He discovered that it had a sister in Borgin and Burke's, and realised that if he could fix the Cabinet in Hogwarts, he could form a passage from the shop to the school, and let in reinforcements that way. After much hard work and painful effort, Malfoy finally succeeded in fixing the Cabinet, and put his plan into motion. Battle On a night in early June at the end of that year, several Death Eaters entered the castle through the Vanishing Cabinet. Malfoy emerged first from the Room clutching his Hand of Glory, threw a handful of Peruvian Instant Darkness Powder into the air and led the Death Eaters away whilst the DA members on watch scrambled to inform the Order of what had happened. Ron, Ginny and Neville ran into Lupin, Tonks, Minerva and Bill almost immediately and told them what had happened; they found the Death Eaters minutes later, heading in the direction of the Astronomy Tower. A fight broke out and the Death Eaters scattered, but the Order members gave chase; Gibbon broke away from the fight and headed up the Tower stairs to set off the Mark, but came running back downstairs to rejoin the fight and was hit by a Killing Curse from Rowle. Meanwhile, Hermione and Luna were keeping watch outside Snape's office; when Flitwick came sprinting down the stairs shouting about Death Eaters in the castle, Snape stunned Flitwick, told Luna and Hermione to tend to him and rushed back upstairs. The fight was going on as strong as ever; Bill had been savaged by Greyback, Flitwick was unconscious, curses were flying everywhere, and Snape and Malfoy had both vanished. Yaxley blocked the stairs with a curse, and Neville was knocked out when he ran at it. Rowle cast a hex that caused half the ceiling to fall in, breaking the barrier; the Order members had just started forwards when Snape and Malfoy emerged, sprinting as though being chased; the fight flourished once more as the other Death Eaters fell from the Tower. Once out, Snape shouted to the others that it had been done, and they all retreated into the grounds - Chapter 28 (Flight of the Prince). Harry gave chase, and a skirmish ensued. The floor was soaked with blood for several corridors, stones missing from the roofs and walls, emerald stones tumbling from the hourglasses in the Great Hall. Hagrid duelled Rowle before the Death Eater set his cabin aflame; Harry, meanwhile, was locked in combat with Snape, who was parrying all of his curses but not striking until finally Harry called him a coward, and attempted to use his own spells against him. The Half-Blood Prince cast one last curse before he fled. Appearances *''Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince'' *''Pottermore'' Trivia *In the films, the siege is reduced to a mere skirmish in the Forest near Hagrid's Hut following Dumbledore's assassination. Notes and references